A majority of participants at this year's Cougar Club of America National Show, in Williamsburg, Va., also had a thing for Carlton's 1969 Competition Orange Eliminator, voting the 428 Super Cobra Jet-powered kitty the best of show. It's no wonder—the car looks great, and that, in large part, is due to Carlton's work. He found the car in a friend's back yard about seven years ago and made a deal for it.

Carlton says he knows of three previous owners of the featured Eliminator. Equipped with a C6 transmission and a 9-inch rear with 3.91 Detroit locker, the car's options include power steering, power brakes and AM radio.

"I enjoy the mechanics of restoration more than the body work," Carlton says. The mechanical work must come relatively easy to Carlton, who retired from General Electric after 32 years as a maintenance mechanic.

He has kept the Eliminator stock, with no modifications. The odometer reads 127,000, but the 428 was replaced with a 360 truck engine at 80,000 miles. "The previous owner still had the original 428 and most of the smog equipment, which made the restoration a lot easier." Carlton saves the car for shows and occasionally takes it out for weekend cruises, but he's only put 350 miles on it since he completed the restoration. He did everything himself, except the transmission and white seat covers.

His Ford stable includes a 1955 Thunderbird be rebuilt in the 1980s, a 1972 low-mileage Mustang convertible and his current project, a 1968 Cougar GT-E.

Carlton's restoration advice is simple, but wise: "If you see a good part, buy it then, because some of these parts are hard to find."

The GT-E is a good example of a car that's a parts hunter's nightmare. "It has been a real test of my patience," says Carlton. "There was nothing about the car that did not need to be replaced or repaired. Good sheet metal for a '67 or '68 Cougar has been very hard to find, and then the '68 427 engine is another story altogether."

Carlton says he heard about the E car from a friend, and after about six months of negotiating, finally agreed on a price with its owner. The car was outside of Blacksburg, Va., just 45 miles from Carlton's home in Salem, Va. The GT-E is a standard hardtop, 427, C-6, equipped with power steering and power disc brakes. When the car is finished, it will be Nordic blue with medium blue interior. It is one of two cars built with this color combination.

Carlton also enjoys collecting 1/64 and 1/24 scale models of cars and trucks, and he has a collection of Hot Wheels cars, too. As for his dream car? Well, Carlton says, "I guess I'm lucky, I've always been able to find and work on my dream cars."

Regarding his handle "fordtime6," Carlton owned six FoMoCo products at the time he created the e-mail address: the T-Bird, Mustang convertible and Eliminator, and also a 1999 F-150, a 1968 Ranchero GT and a 1970 Mach I 428 CJ. He has since sold the latter two. Guess he'll have to find another Ford product once the GT-E is done so he can keep that handle!